英语词源字典 - 在线词源网站

acquit: acquit: [13] Acquit is ultimately related to quiet. The Latin noun quies, from which we get quiet, was the basis of a probable verb *quietare, later *quitare, whose original meaning, ‘put to rest’, developed to ‘settle’, as in ‘settle a debt’. With the addition of the prefix ad- this passed into Old French as a(c)quiter, and thence into English (still with the ‘settling or discharging debts’ meaning). The currently most common sense, ‘declare not guilty’, did not appear until the 14th century, and the most recent meaning, ‘conduct oneself in a particular way’, developed from the notion of discharging one’s duties.
=> quiet
custom: custom: [12] Custom comes ultimately from Latin consuēscere, a compound verb formed from the intensive prefix com- and suēscere ‘become accustomed’. This in turn was derived from suī, the genitive singular of the reflexive pronoun suus ‘oneself’; the notion underlying its formation was therefore ‘that which is one’s own’, a semantic element echoed in Greek ethos ‘custom, usage, trait’, which was based ultimately on Indo-European *swe- ‘oneself’.

From consuēscere was formed the Latin noun consuētūdō ‘being accustomed’ (source of the English legal noun consuetude ‘custom’ [14]). This passed into early Old French as *costudne, which developed via *costumne to custome, the form borrowed into Middle English (English costume came from the same ultimate source, but via Italian costume).

The word’s original sense, ‘habitual practice’, developed various secondary associations, including ‘customary tax’ (whence customs duties) and ‘customary business patronage’ (whence customer). The derivative accustom [15] was borrowed from Anglo-Norman acustumer.
=> accustom, costume
sabbath: sabbath: [OE] The sabbath is etymologically the day of ‘rest’. The word comes ultimately from Hebrew shabbāth, a derivative of shābath ‘rest’. English acquired it via Greek sábbaton and Latin sabbatum. The modern use of the derived sabbatical [16] for a ‘period away from normal duties’, first recorded in the 19th century, evolved from its original application to the one year in seven when, according to ancient Jewish law, land had to be left fallow. French samedi ‘Saturday’ comes from the same source.
=> sabbatical
secretary: secretary: [14] A secretary was originally a ‘person in someone else’s confidence, sharing secret or private matters with them’ (‘[Christ] taking with him his three special secretaries, that is to say Peter and James and John’, Nicholas Love, Mirror of the life of Jesus Christ 1400). The word was adapted from late Latin sēcrētārius ‘confidential aide’, a derivative of Latin sēcrētus ‘secret’. The notion of writing letters and performing other clerical duties developed in the Latin word, and first emerged in English in the 15th century.
=> secret
acting (adj.): 1590s, "putting forth activity," present participle adjective from act (v.). Meaning "performing temporary duties" is from 1797.
ad valorem: type of customs duties, 1711, Modern Latin, "(in proportion) to the value," from ad "to" (see ad-) + Late Latin valorem, accusative of valor "value" (see value (n.)).
arrear: c. 1300, "at a disadvantage;" mid-14c., "in times past;" late 14c., "in or to the rear;" see arrears. Meaning "behind in duties or payments" is from 1620s.
attendance (n.): late 14c., "act of attending to one's duties," from Old French atendance "attention, wait, hope, expectation," from atendant, present participle of atendre (see attend). Meaning "action of waiting on someone" dates from late 14c. (to dance attendance on someone is from 1560s); that of "action of being present, presenting oneself" (originally with intent of taking a part) is from mid-15c. Meaning "number of persons present" is from 1835.
common (adj.): c. 1300, "belonging to all, general," from Old French comun "common, general, free, open, public" (9c., Modern French commun), from Latin communis "in common, public, shared by all or many; general, not specific; familiar, not pretentious," from PIE *ko-moin-i- "held in common," compound adjective formed from *ko- "together" + *moi-n-, suffixed form of root *mei- (1) "change, exchange" (see mutable), hence literally "shared by all."

Second element of the compound also is the source of Latin munia "duties, public duties, functions," those related to munia "office." Perhaps reinforced in Old French by the Germanic form of PIE *ko-moin-i- (compare Old English gemæne "common, public, general, universal;" see mean (adj.)), which came to French via Frankish.

Used disparagingly of women and criminals since c. 1300. Common pleas is 13c., from Anglo-French communs plets, hearing civil actions by one subject against another as opposed to pleas of the crown. Common prayer is contrasted with private prayer. Common stock is attested from 1888.
coroner (n.): late 12c., from Anglo-French curuner, from Latin custos placitorum coronae, originally the title of the officer with the duty of protecting the property of the royal family, from Latin corona, literally "crown" (see crown (n.)). The duties of the office gradually narrowed and by 17c. the chief function was to determine the cause of death in cases not obviously natural.
detail (n.): c. 1600, from French détail, from Old French detail "small piece or quantity," literally "a cutting in pieces," from detaillier "cut in pieces," from de- "entirely" (see de-) + taillier "to cut in pieces" (see tailor).

Modern sense is from French en détail "piece by piece, item by item" (as opposed to en gros), a commercial term used where we would today use retail. Military sense is 1708, from notion of "distribution in detail of the daily orders first given in general," including assignment of specific duties.
discharge (v.): early 14c., "to exempt, exonerate, release," from Old French deschargier (12c., Modern French décharger) "to unload, discharge," from Late Latin discarricare, from dis- "do the opposite of" (see dis-) + carricare "load" (see charge (v.)).

Meaning "to unload, to free from" is late 14c. Of weapons, from 1550s. The electrical sense is first attested 1748. Meaning "to fulfill, to perform one's duties" is from c. 1400. Related: Discharged; discharging.
duty (n.): late 13c., from Anglo-French duete, from Old French deu "due, owed; proper, just," from Vulgar Latin *debutus, from Latin debitus, past participle of debere "to owe" (see debt). Related: Duties. The sense of "tax or fee on imports, exports, etc." is from late 15c.; duty-free as a noun is attested from 1958.
economic (adj.): 1590s, "pertaining to management of a household," perhaps shortened from economical, or else from French économique or directly from Latin oeconomicus "of domestic economy," from Greek oikonomikos "practiced in the management of a household or family" (also the name of a treatise by Xenophon on the duties of domestic life), hence, "frugal, thrifty," from oikonomia "household management" (see economy (n.)). Meaning "relating to the science of economics" is from 1835 and now is the main sense, economical retaining the older one of "characterized by thrift."
empty (adj.): c. 1200, from Old English æmettig "at leisure, not occupied; unmarried," also "containing nothing, unoccupied," from æmetta "leisure," from æ "not" + -metta, from motan "to have" (see might (n.)). The -p- is a euphonic insertion.

Sense evolution from "at leisure" to "containing nothing, unoccupied" is paralleled in several languages, such as Modern Greek adeios "empty," originally "freedom from fear," from deios "fear." "The adj. adeios must have been applied first to persons who enjoyed freedom from duties, leisure, and so were unoccupied, whence it was extended to objects that were unoccupied" [Buck]. Related: Emptier. Figurative sense of empty-nester attested by 1960.
enter (v.): late 13c. entren, "enter into a place or a situation; join a group or society" (trans.); early 14c., "make one's entrance" (intrans.), from Old French entrer "enter, go in; enter upon, assume; initiate," from Latin intrare "to go into, enter" (source of Spanish entrar, Italian entrare), from intra "within," related to inter (prep., adj.) "among, between" (see inter-). Transitive and intransitive in Latin; in French intransitive only. From c. 1300 in English as "join or engage in: (an activity);" late 14c. as "penetrate," also "have sexual intercourse" (with a woman);" also "make an entry in a record or list," also "assume the duties" (of office, etc.). Related: Entered; entering.
ex officio: Latin, "in discharge of one's duties," literally "out of duty," from ex "out of" (see ex-) + officio, ablative of officium "duty" (see office).
fag (v.2): "put to work at certain duties, compel to work for one's benefit," 1806, from British public school slang fag (n.) "junior student who does certain duties for a senior" (1785), from fag (v.1). Related: Fagdom (1902); faggery "fatiguing labor" (1853).
faggot (n.2): "male homosexual," 1914, American English slang, probably from earlier contemptuous term for "woman" (1590s), especially an old and unpleasant one, in reference to faggot (n.1) "bundle of sticks," as something awkward that has to be carried (compare baggage "worthless woman," 1590s). It may also be reinforced by Yiddish faygele "homosexual" (n.), literally "little bird." It also may have roots in British public school slang noun fag "a junior who does certain duties for a senior" (1785), with suggestions of "catamite," from fag (v.). This also spun off a verb (see fag (v.2).
He [the prefect] used to fag me to blow the chapel organ for him. ["Boy's Own Paper," 1889]
Other obsolete British senses of faggot were "man hired into military service merely to fill out the ranks at muster" (1700) and "vote manufactured for party purposes" (1817).

The explanation that male homosexuals were called faggots because they were burned at the stake as punishment is an etymological urban legend. Burning sometimes was a punishment meted out to homosexuals in Christian Europe (on the suggestion of the Biblical fate of Sodom and Gomorrah), but in England, where parliament had made homosexuality a capital offense in 1533, hanging was the method prescribed. Use of faggot in connection with public executions had long been obscure English historical trivia by the time the word began to be used for "male homosexual" in 20th century American slang, whereas the contemptuous slang word for "woman" (in common with the other possible sources or influences listed here) was in active use early 20c., by D.H. Lawrence and James Joyce, among others.
farm (n.): c. 1300, "fixed payment (usually in exchange for taxes collected, etc.), fixed rent," from Old French ferme "a rent, lease" (13c.), from Medieval Latin firma "fixed payment," from Latin firmare "to fix, settle, confirm, strengthen," from firmus "firm" (see firm (adj.)).

Sense of "tract of leased land" is first recorded early 14c.; that of "cultivated land" (leased or not) is 1520s. A word of confused history, but there is agreement that "the purely agricultural sense is comparatively modern" [Century Dictionary]. There is a set of Old English words that appear to be related in sound and sense; if these, too, are from Latin it would be a very early borrowing. Some books strenuously defend a theory that the Anglo-Saxon words are original (perhaps related to feorh "life").

Phrase buy the farm "die in battle," is at least from World War II, perhaps a cynical reference to the draftee's dream of getting out of the war and going home, in many cases to a peaceful farmstead. But fetch the farm is prisoner slang from at least 1879 for "get sent to the infirmary," with reference to the better diet and lighter duties there.
fatigues (n.): 1776, "extra duties of a soldier," from fatigue (n.). As a military clothing outfit, from 1836, short for fatigue dress (1833); fatigue cap is from 1824.
fee (n.): Middle English, representing the merger or mutual influence of two words, one from Old English, one from an Old French form of the same Germanic word, and both ultimately from a PIE root meaning "cattle."

The Old English word is feoh "livestock, cattle; movable property; possessions in livestock, goods, or money; riches, treasure, wealth; money as a medium of exchange or payment," from Proto-Germanic *fehu- (cognates: Old Saxon fehu, Old High German fihu, German Vieh "cattle," Gothic faihu "money, fortune"). This is from PIE *peku- "cattle" (cognates: Sanskrit pasu, Lithuanian pekus "cattle;" Latin pecu "cattle," pecunia "money, property").

The other word is Anglo-French fee, from Old French fieu, a variant of fief "possession, holding, domain; feudal duties, payment" (see fief), which apparently is a Germanic compound in which the first element is cognate with Old English feoh.

Via Anglo-French come the legal senses "estate in land or tenements held on condition of feudal homage; land, property, possession" (c. 1300). Hence fee-simple (late 14c.) "absolute ownership," as opposed to fee-tail (early 15c.) "entailed ownership," inheritance limited to some particular class of heirs (second element from Old French taillir "to cut, to limit").

The feudal sense was extended from landholdings to inheritable offices of service to a feudal lord (late 14c.; in Anglo-French late 13c.), for example forester of fe "a forester by heritable right." As these often were offices of profit, the word came to be used for "remuneration for service in office" (late 14c.), hence, "payment for (any kind of) work or services" (late 14c.). From late 14c. as "a sum paid for a privilege" (originally admission to a guild); early 15c. as "money payment or charge exacted for a license, etc."
fief (n.): also feoff, 1610s, from French fief (12c.) "a 'feud,' possession, holding, domain; feudal duties, payment," from Medieval Latin feodum "land or other property whose use is granted in return for service," widely said to be from Frankish *fehu-od "payment-estate," or a similar Germanic compound, in which the first element is from Proto-Germanic *fekhu, making it cognate with Old English feoh "money, movable property, cattle" (see fee). Second element perhaps is similar to Old English ead "wealth" (see Edith).
guest (n.): Old English gæst, giest (Anglian gest) "an accidental guest, a chance comer, a stranger," from Proto-Germanic *gastiz (cognates: Old Frisian jest, Dutch gast, German Gast, Gothic gasts "guest," originally "stranger"), from PIE root *ghos-ti- "stranger, guest; host" (cognates: Latin hostis, in earlier use "a stranger," in classical use "an enemy," hospes "host," from *hosti-potis "host, guest," originally "lord of strangers;" Greek xenos "guest, host, stranger;" Old Church Slavonic gosti "guest, friend," gospodi "lord, master"); the root sense, according to Watkins, probably is "someone with whom one has reciprocal duties of hospitality," representing "a mutual exchange relationship highly important to ancient Indo-European society." But as strangers are potential enemies as well as guests, the word has a forked path.

Spelling evolution influenced by Old Norse cognate gestr (the usual sound changes from the Old English word would have yielded Modern English *yest). Meaning "person entertained for pay" (at an inn, etc.) is from late 13c. Old English also had cuma "stranger, guest," literally "a comer." Phrase be my guest in the sense of "go right ahead" first recorded 1955.
Hayward: proper name, from Old English hege-weard "guardian of the fence/hedge" (see hedge (n.) + ward (n.)). His original duties seem to have been protecting the fences around the Lammas lands, when enclosed, to prevent cattle from breaking in while the crops grew.
incumbent (adj.): 1560s, in relation to duties or obligations, from Latin incumbentem (nominative incumbens), present participle of incumbere (see incumbent (n.)). The literal, physical sense is rare in English and first attested 1620s.
k.p. (n.): "kitchen duty," 1935, apparently short for kitchen police (duties), itself attested from 1933 as part of Boy Scouting and other camping activities; the expression's sense sometimes shifted to kitchen patrol (1940) during World War II.
last (v.): "endure, go on existing," from Old English læstan "to continue, endure," earlier "accomplish, carry out," literally "to follow a track," from Proto-Germanic *laistjan "to follow a track" (cognates: Gothic laistjan "to follow," Old Frisian lasta "to fulfill, to pay (duties)," German leisten "to perform, achieve, afford"), from PIE *leis- (1) "track, furrow" (see learn).

Related to last (n.), not to last (adj.). Related: Lasted; lasting.
linesman (n.): 1856, "soldier in a regiment of the line," from genitive of line (n.) + man (n.). Sports sense, in reference to umpires with specific duties in games with lines (originally tennis, also ice hockey) is from 1890.
office (n.): mid-13c., "a post, an employment to which certain duties are attached," from Anglo-French and Old French ofice "place or function; divine service" (12c. in Old French) or directly from Latin officium "service, kindness, favor; official duty, function, business; ceremonial observance," (in Church Latin, "church service"), literally "work-doing," from ops (genitive opis) "power, might, abundance, means" (related to opus "work;" see opus) + stem of facere "do, perform" (see factitious). Meaning "place for conducting business" first recorded 1560s. Office hours attested from 1841.
pool (n.2): game similar to billiards, 1848, originally (1690s) a card game played for collective stakes (a "pool"), from French poule "stakes, booty, plunder," literally "hen," from Old French poille "hen, young fowl" (see foal (n.)).

Perhaps the original notion is from jeu de la poule, supposedly a game in which people threw things at a chicken and the player who hit it, won it, which speaks volumes about life in the Middle Ages. The notion behind the word, then, is "playing for money." The connection of "hen" and "stakes" is also present in Spanish polla and Walloon paie.

Meaning "collective stakes" in betting first recorded 1869; sense of "common reservoir of resources" is from 1917. Meaning "group of persons who share duties or skills" is from 1928. From 1933 as short for football pool in wagering. Pool shark is from 1898. The phrase dirty pool "underhanded or unsportsmanlike conduct," especially in politics (1951), seems to belong here now, but the phrase dirty pool of politics, with an image of pool (n.1) is recorded from 1871 and was in use early 20c.
quartermaster (n.): early 15c., "subordinate officer of a ship," from French quartier-maître or directly from Dutch kwartier-meester; originally a ship's officer whose duties included stowing of the hold; later (c. 1600) an officer in charge of quarters and rations for troops. See quarters.
sinecure (n.): 1660s, "church benefice with an emolument but without parish duties," from Medieval Latin beneficium sine cura "benefice without care" (of souls), from Latin sine "without" (see sans) + cura, ablative singular of cura "care" (see cure (n.1)).
tariff (n.): 1590s, "arithmetical table," also "official list of customs duties on imports or exports; law regulating import duties," from Italian tariffa "tariff, price, assessment," Medieval Latin tarifa "list of prices, book of rates," from Arabic ta'rif "information, notification, a making known; inventory of fees to be paid," verbal noun from arafa "he made known, he taught." Sense of "classified list of charges made in a business" is recorded from 1757. The U.S. Tariff of Abominations was passed in 1828.
customs: "The official department that administers and collects the duties levied by a government on imported goods", Late Middle English: originally in the singular, denoting a customary due paid to a ruler, later duty levied on goods on their way to market.
housecraft: "The art of household management; skill in domestic duties", Mid 19th cent.; earliest use found in Art-Union Monthly Journal. From house + craft.